


The New Dawn

by Genius_626



Series: Barduil Seasons [2]
Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Epilogue, Family Feels, Family Vacation, Feelings, Fluff, M/M, Moving In Together, Tooth Rotting Fluff, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-24
Updated: 2016-10-27
Packaged: 2018-08-24 09:28:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8367094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Genius_626/pseuds/Genius_626
Summary: Bard and Thranduil start planning their wedding, but not before going on a family trip abroad to visit Legolas.





	1. Summer and Autumn

That summer had been one to remember for the whole family. Thranduil had decided—on top of planning the wedding, the honeymoon, and looking for the perfect house—that they needed to go on vacation as a unit for the first time. Whether or not it was because he wanted to see Legolas in his natural environment, the kids had loved the idea, as they hadn’t had a real vacation in years, not since long before their mother passed. Bard, always the more reasonable when it came to spending money on the things Thranduil often indulged in to specifically spoil his children, was quickly outnumbered, so there was no fighting it. 

“Are you determined to make this the most expensive year we’ll ever live through?” Bard said one day when they were crunching the numbers. Thranduil was, for lack of a better term, insanely loaded, not to mention very good at managing his money. It gave Bard slight heart palpitations to see so many zeroes at the same time, but Thranduil always said he’d get used to it.

“I am determined to make this the most memorable year, and if it turns out to be expensive, so be it.” Thranduil replied, not looking away from his computer. “Just think about it. This trip, the wedding, the honeymoon, the house, it’ll be ingrained in our memories forever.”

Bard couldn’t help but smile at just how nonchalant Thranduil had said that, although the blonde was smirking now. After a few moments of typing away at a spread sheet, Thranduil continued.

“You deserve it, you know.”

Bard looked up from his own work. “What?”

“You deserve every good thing that comes to you. You and the kids.” Thranduil said, still not looking up from his computer, although he was beginning to sound more emotional. “You’re my partner and my hero. All I want is to give you all I have.”

Bard melted a little at the sincerity of those words. Of course they said “I love you” most days, or found some other way to say it, but this was an expected, heartfelt reminder. Without saying anything, Bard brought his chair closer to Thranduil and pushed his laptop to the side. Before Thranduil could even meet his eyes, Bard had pulled him into a deep kiss. 

After a few moment when they pulled away, they locked eyes, and Bard knew Thranduil had more to say. 

“Sometimes I remember how busy I used to be.” The blonde said. “Well, I still am, but I need to make time with you and the kids. I’ve done this before; the spouse, the family, and I mistreated it, completely ruined it—“

“You didn’t ruin anything.” Bard stopped Thranduil from spiraling further onto his current path. “You were hurting and made some mistakes. But we’ve fixed them, haven’t we? We’re going to see your son again, and you have me, and the kids. We’re not going anywhere, not without you.”

“I didn’t tell her I loved her enough.” Thranduil said, tears threatening to escape his eyes. 

“I’m sure she knew, like I know. I’ll never doubt it.” Bard said, hands on either side of Thranduil’s face. The blonde smiled at him, leaning into him for support.

“I would apologize for being emotional, but I can’t help it, I’ve been thinking a lot lately.”

“Me too.” Bard said. “And you never apologize for anything.” That earned him a kick in the shin, which Thranduil did not apologize for.

The trip was planned to be the second to last week of summer, so that the kids had a full week to recuperate before school started. Legolas and his friends were planning to meet them in Rivendell, which was infamous for the tourism, but with a little insider know how, it was possible to find the most gorgeous secluded forest walks and trails for mountain climbing. Rivendell had been the first of Legolas’ adventures, so he knew it well.

Passports attained, plane tickets bought, luggage packed, Thranduil looked forward to the vacation as an adventure while Bard was inevitably both happy to be going, while cautious all the same. He’d never been one to travel, Laketown had been his homestead since childhood, so he was leaning quite heavily on Thranduil’s expertise when it came to organizing themselves at the airport and whatnot. When they finally got on the plane, the kids were seated in their own row of three, while Bard and Thranduil were just across from them. Upon getting their carry ons tucked away and finally buckling into their seats, Bard exhaled heavily, as if he’d been holding in a breath for the last hour.

“You did very well.” Thranduil teased. “We all made it in one piece.”

Bard gave a wry smile and Thranduil chuckled. The blonde put an arm around his fiancé. “Maybe you should try to sleep, or at least rest. We do have a ten hour flight.”

Bard buried his face into Thranduil’s neck and groaned, although he didn’t really mean it. Once this flight was over, his camera would be out and taking pictures of his family constantly. He was looking forward to whatever Thranduil had in store for them. 

…

They’d met Legolas, Aragorn, and Gimli at the hotel. The kids were so full of energy and ready to move after the ten hour flight—all of them having easily slept on the plane to Bard astonishment—so Legolas suggested that he and the guys take them out for a while so that Thranduil and Bard could settle in. Neither parents objected to the idea, so the party of five split up for what they planned to be two or three hours. They first all had to go up to the room to drop off their things. To everyone’s surprise but thranduil’s since he had booked the thing, the room was a luxury suite, amenities and multiple rooms and everything. 

“Not too shabby.” Legolas said, shrugging. “I’ve seen better.”

“Says the one camping out in nothing but a sleeping bag most nights.” Thranduil replied. 

The kids were nearly stunned and wanted to explore, but left in favor of stretching their legs and eating out. Bard, however, was still reeling by the time they left.

“Why did you not tell me we were getting the suite?” Bard said.

“Because I wanted to surprise you.” Thranduil answered while putting his clothes away in the wardrobe bother bed. “And I didn’t want to argue about it.”

“Well, as long as that doesn’t become a habit for trying to avoid arguments with me.” Bard said with a sigh. “It really is a nice here. What on earth are we going to do for our honeymoon?”

“Something more your speed. I was thinking something along the lines of getting a cabin in the woods, renting a barge and taking it out on the lake. As long as we’re alone, and somewhere cold enough so that I’ll have an excuse to have you wrapped around me all night.”

Bard sometimes couldn’t believe the thoughtfulness of Thranduil. “You think of absolutely everything. We’d be more or less camping, you’d really be ok with that?”

Thranduil hung up his last shirt and turned to Bard. “I may enjoy luxury, but I admire nature as much as you do, maybe even a little bit more. I’ll surprise you with how good I m at camping, and it will be good for both of us.” 

Bard smiled, genuinely happy, grateful for where he was and who he was with. Thranduil came closer and Bard wrapped his arms around the blonde’s waist. 

“I’d say let’s make the best use of our time alone, but I’m exhausted.” Bard said, laughing at himself.

“Who said sleeping wasn’t the best use of our time? Besides, in a few days we can have Legolas take the kids again and have a few hours just to ourselves.”

“I like the sound of that.” Bard said, not even undressing before getting into bed. They were both asleep within minutes.

The trip was a success, to say the least. They had taken so many pictures, Bard was amazed they still had room on the memory cards. Bard sometimes gave Tilda the camera, which made for some pretty hilarious close ups of everyone and whatever else was around them. Bard remembered to get the the quintessential dad photos, especially of Thranduil and Legolas together. There was a particular one he was pretty proud of, which he already decided would be framed and hung somewhere in their future house. 

And a few months later, they found that house.

Tilda was clamoring to get out of the car to see the house while Sigrid and Bain tried to keep their excitement to themselves. Immediately upon finding this listing, Bard and Thranduil had known it was the right choice. They put a bid on it after only having shown the kids pictures, but it didn’t take long for the previous owners to accept, and was theirs within a week. 

Bard got to the door first and let Tilda run inside. He smiled at his older children, who walked past looking very impressed. Tilda opened the door to the backyard, while Bain quickly found the fireplace. 

“Is this real? Can we use it?” He asked.

“Yes, but you’ll have to clean it if you want to use it.” Bard said, and Bain nodded, not at all taken aback by an extra chore. 

Sigrid surveyed a few rooms before circling back to her parents. “We can really afford this?”

Thranduil rested a hand on her shoulder. “Oh, of course we can. But that should be none of your concern. If I were you, I’d be going upstairs to claim a room.”

“We all get of own rooms?” Sigrid asked. 

“Absolutely.” 

“I call the master bedroom!” Bain said, climbing up the stairs two at a time.

“Oh no you don’t.” Bard said, getting to the bottom of the stairs. “You don’t have to share a room with another grown man!”

“You have to catch me to claim it!” Bain said as he started running, Bard following close behind. They both disappeared down the hall, but everyone could hear Bain’s shriek when he was caught. 

Tilda came in and bounded up the stairs to follow the gleeful noise, while Thranduil and Sigrid followed with amused smiles on their faces. In the master bedroom, father and son had ended up wrestling. Tilda tried to help her brother by wrapping her arms around Bard’s neck and trying to weigh him down. Bard then graciously accepted defeat and Bain escaped and got up to stand next to Sigrid and Thranduil. 

“So when do we move in?” Bain asked, a little out of breath.

“We’ll probably do it in stages.” Thranduil said. “We’ll wait until school is over to fully move in, but I’ll be hiring some people to move my things here, and then get what you have in storage.”

“Will we be moved in by the wedding?” Sigrid asked. 

“Hopefully.” Bard answered, getting to his feet with Tilda still hanging on. “We want to be able to have the reception here, since city hall is only a few blocks away. With the small guest list of just close family and friends, this should suffice.”

Tilda hopped down to her feet and ran off into the hallway. “I get first pick of my room!”

Bain had a second wind and ran after her, Sigrid following at a comfortable walk. Bard couldn’t stop smiling, looking around the room that would be his and Thranduil’s for years to come.

“I thought I was excited the first time I settled down.” Bard said. “I feel like it’s happening all over again, but somehow it doesn’t overshadow the first time.”

“Of course it doesn’t. And it never will.” Thranduil said, stepping closer to his fiancé and encircling his arms around his waist. “I remember my first wedding. I was a nervous wreck, but so in love. My entire family was there, extended family, my father’s old friends, business associates, people I’d met only once from her side of the family. The hall we were in was ancient and beautiful, the cake was huge, the dance we’d rehearsed for months.” Thranduil kissed the tip of Bard’s nose. “Ours will be smaller, more personal, I think, but no less special.”

Bard leaned in and kissed him full on the lips, not letting the blonde go until he heard the children’s voices start to get louder from down the hall.

“Should we go check and see if they’re being civil?” Bard asked.

“If we must stop, I suppose that’s as good an excuse as any.” Thranduil teased, already heading for the door.


	2. Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wedding and honeymoon

The wedding was planned for mid December. It would be a hectic few days, as the family would only just be fully moved in by then. Unpacking had been mostly fun for the kids and a little grueling for the parents as they suddenly now had two sets of everything from silverware to furniture. Eventually, they worked out that whatever they didn’t want in the house at present could go to storage and be saved for if the kids moved out and needed anything, Sigrid would be graduating in a year after all.

Thranduil was especially meticulous with the interior design, which included decorations, as the holidays were coming up also. Both Thranduil and Bard had liked the idea of their wedding being in December as both of their first weddings had been in the summer, and this way, they could later celebrate the winter holidays in general.

The day of the wedding, Sigrid had volunteered to act as hostess/coordinator for the small crowd of family and friends assembled at city hall, and Legolas was there to help her. It was cloudy with no forecast for rain--weather that wasn't exactly conventional for weddings, but both the grooms loved winter weather--so all the party had to endure was being in the cold for the few minutes the ceremony would take, and then off to the house. 

Bain and Tilda were with Bard and Thranduil back home, making sure everything was in order with the house and with the grooms. They’d decided on business casual for the whole affair, which was a compromise between Bard’s dislike of most formal attire and Thranduil’s love for it. Thranduil was making sure Bard’s jacket was lint free and looking just right when Bain walked in reporting that everything in the kitchen and living room was set up. He turned to leave them to it when Thranduil caught him by the back of his shirt collar.

“Oh no you don’t, young man. Who taught you how to tie a tie?”

“Da, obviously.” Bain answered, turning around and chuckling as Thranduil proceeded to undo his tie for him. 

“No wonder.” Thranduil smirked, earning a half hearted sigh from Bard as he walked out of the room to find Tilda. It only took Thranduil a few seconds to be done. “There. No son of mine will be showing off mediocre technique. I’m afraid there’s no hope for Bard, he’ll never learn.”

Bain laughed. “Thanks, Ada. You’ll have to re-teach me, then.”

“It’ll be my pleasure.” Thranduil said, smiling like he had been all day. Sure, he was happy, but he was also feeling very grateful, for Bard, the kids, their life. As he looked around the living room, all he could see was their future; a second chance for himself to be a husband and a father. For years before meeting the Bowmans, his future had always seemed so bleak, caught in a a never ending dusk. Now there was light where there was none before; a new dawn. 

Just a few minutes later, they parked across the street from the court house and made their way to the gazebo where their party was gathered. Bard’s fire fighting team was there, which was practically half of the fire department, and they made a show of greeting the two grooms and promptly dragging them to the alter. 

“Control your troop, Bard, I think one of them nearly took a bite out of me.” Thranduil said.

Bard laughed and leaned in close. “That was Bifur, don’t worry, he knows that I’m the only one allowed to bite you.” 

“Save it for the honeymoon, Bowman.” Thranduil said under his breath, making Bard laugh again. 

They kept the ceremony brief, took pictures out in the court house lawn with the kids, and went straight back home for refreshments. Within a few hours, everyone had come and gone. Bard had never been one for parties of any kind, but even he couldn't deny that everything had gone swimmingly. 

“And to think you were nervous about this.” Thranduil said to Bard, taking his hand and kissing it. They were sitting on the couch together while their kids were scattered by the fireplace, Legolas showing off a card trick to Tilda, Sigrid and Bain playing chess. 

“Da was nervous?” Sigrid said. “You never get nervous.”

“He’s talking about when we started planning.” Bard said. “Your mother and I didn’t have a wedding because neither of us wanted one. We were nineteen and winging it. Didn’t want to make a big fuss about anything, not that anyone in our families could afford it.”

“It took me a good few weeks to convince him that a small wedding would be nice.” Thranduil added. “You enjoyed yourself, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I did.”

"So does that mean we can throw a New Years party?" Thranduil leaned into his husband, looking as sly as he could muster. 

"Don't push your luck, babe." Bard said with a straight face. "I think I've had enough fun to last me another year."

“And you’ll have even more fun on your honeymoon tomorrow.” Tilda said. “I wish I were going, too.” 

“Nooo you don’t.” Bain said, the horrified look on his face enough to tell the adults where his mind had gone. Sigrid and Legolas erupted in laughter while Tilda just looked confused. 

Bard tried to stifle his laughter. “We’ll all go camping eventually, maybe when it gets a little warmer so that we can swim in the lake.”

“I’ve become quite the fireside cook, so don’t forget to invite me.” Legolas said. 

Thranduil smiled at that. He had wondered if Legolas would want to spend more time with the family, or if he considered himself too old to bond with the kids, but it seemed he was very welcome to the idea of younger siblings, and even a step-dad. It warmed his heart to know that he and his green leaf had mended things so well. 

"Of course, Legs, you're welcome to join us anywhere, anytime." Bard said. "As long as you don't mind all these plane trips."

"Actually..." Legolas started, putting down the cards he was shuffling. "I was meaning to tell you all, I only had enough time with Sigrid today, so she knows, but I was waiting to tell everyone else."

"Tell us what?" Tilda asked before anyone else could.

"Well," Legolas took a breath. "The Three Hunters are taking a break, or disbanding temporarily, we're not sure yet. All I know is that Aragorn is getting married in a few months and thinking of quitting, while Gimli and I want to seriously go into travel journalism. So we've decided to come back home for the time being to help Aragorn get ready for the wedding, and also to do some research on the next steps we want to take." Legolas shrugged. "By my calculations, Gimli and I are looking for an apartment to lease for a year or so."

Sigrid and Legolas both looked to their parents to see their reactions and were not disappointed. Bard looked happily surprised, and more than happy to let go of his husband's hand to let him go over to his son and wrap him up in his arms. Sigrid tried not to cry when she saw the tears in Legolas' eyes, so she got up to hug her own father, who was also holding back some waterworks. 

"I'm so proud of you." Thranduil said, pulling back and holding his son by he shoulders. "For following your heart, it's taken you all over the world and back."

"I'm glad I've made it back." Legolas said. "There was a time I thought I'd never come back."

"You two are too much!" Bain nearly shouted. He got up and made his way to the kitchen. "I didn't sign up to have this many feelings today, I've already had my fill. So I'm making hot chocolate, who wants some?" 

Bard and Sigrid burst into laughter, which produced their own kind of tears, while Thranduil got up to tackle Bain into a kind of apologetic hug. 

"It'll be good to have the family all together." Bard said to Legolas, wiping his eyes with the heel of his hand, an arm still slung around his eldest daughter. "It seems we work together well, if this evening isn't proof of that."

Legolas smiled and looked around, taking in the moment; seeing his new family for who they were. He liked the sound of having a family again.

...

The next day, Bard and Thranduil arrived at their rented cabin. It was old, rustic, and sturdily built for winter. With the combination of both the newlywed's camping expertise, the weekend would be a nice get away. The first thing they did after they unpacked was explore the area. An afternoon hike showed them to a gorgeous lake, a few walking paths, a long bridge that went above a large stream, and a few sightings of wildlife. Bard took a few blurry pictures trying to capture said wildlife before handing the camera over to Thranduil, who actually knew a little about photography to do it right.

Before they knew it, they'd spent hours just walking, talking and trying to take silly pictures of themselves. As evening was soon approaching, they went back to the cabin.

“It’s already cold.” Bard said, shutting the window and rubbing his hands together. “Do you want tea now or later?”

“Later.” Thranduil said, walking up from behind Bard, wrapping his arms around him and pressing his hands up against the brunette’s chest. He spoke in his husband’s ear. “I think I’ll have you right now. If you’ll have me, that is.”

Bard didn’t have the words to respond, so he spun around and out of Thranduil’s grip to pull him close, kissing him full on the mouth. Thranduil pushed Bard so that he was pinned against the countertop, rolling his hips into Bard’s, a little too hard to count as teasing. Bard moaned and pulled away, walking towards the bed and beckoning for his husband to follow.

“Wow, it’s different thinking of you as my husband.” Bard said as he sat down to take his boots off. 

“How so?” Thranduil asked, sitting beside him to do the same.

“I don’t know, it was weird enough calling you my boyfriend when we started dating, I felt a little too old for a boyfriend. And now I’m married again. I guess I never thought it could happen.”

“I used to feel the same, so I didn’t even bother seeing anyone. Until you, that is.” 

Bard smiled and laughed when Thranduil leaned in again, kissing and biting his neck.

"I'm going to make you scream." Thranduil said against Bard's skin. "We may never have this kind of secluded opportunity again."

Bard wanted to say something, but was pretty much unable to say actually words for the rest of the good part of an hour. When they had worn themselves out, the sun had finally set and they could see the brilliant starlight from their window, uninhibited by the light pollution of city life. 

Bard was lying with his head on Thranduil's chest, listening to his deep, even breaths and steady heartbeat. “What was your first honeymoon like?” 

Thranduil hummed in response. “Well, we definitely didn’t have sex the first night.”

Bard laughed. “Really?”

“We had a week in Lothlorien, and we were so tired from the flight up there, that we ended up falling asleep on the couch watching a movie. To be honest, the whole thing was more awkward than romantic. As privileged as both of us had been all our lives, we'd been in the military for quite some time, and being there somehow didn't feel quite right.” 

Bard hummed to tell Thranduil he was still listening, even with his eyes closed and face buried in the other’s shoulder. 

"We'd just finished a tour before that. Our parents had been very adamant that we treat ourselves, but I remember our second night there, we slept on the couch anyway because the bed was just...too soft, was what she told me." Thranduil sighed. "After she died and I left the army to pursue Mirkwood Industries in my father's place, I surrounded myself in luxury. I told myself it was because I wanted Legolas to live a good life, or because it befit a CEO, but I was wrong."

"You were trying to protect yourself." Bard said. He had started sliding his hands up and down Thranduil's scars, the one's covering almost his entire right side. "If you could surround yourself with things she disliked, maybe you could forget about her. And maybe if you forgot about her, you wouldn't be in so much pain."

"It only made everything worse, obviously.I see that now." Thranduil said, sighing. “I haven’t been able to talk about her like this in years. Before, I just felt pain. Now, I’m actually happy looking back and remembering her.” Thranduil smoothed his fingers over Bard’s wavy locks. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be able to. I feel like I should thank you every day.”

“And you don’t think I feel the same?" Bard said, lifting himself up on one elbow. "For years, not only have I been scraping by, but I’ve had to divide so much of my time away from my kids. I’m more than grateful that they have a second parent now, to love them and look after them when I can’t be there.”

Thranduil smiled. "I love our family."

"Me too."

Thranduil slipped a hand to the back of Bard's neck and pulled him down for a kiss. 

"What would I have to do to convince you to go skinny dipping with me tomorrow morning?" Thranduil said against Bard's lips, earning a bit on his lower lip.

"Nothing will get me in that freezing water, not even a repeat performance of what we just did five minutes ago."

"I had to try."


End file.
